[.ca] Buffalo Soldiers (ISBN 0679742034)

The Most Important Book I Have Ever Read:
I have read this book five or so times over the last ten years. It is brilliant. Each time I read it, I appreciate Professor O'Connor's observations about the world and the wildly original way the story is told (military speak is used to describe all aspects of life.) The events are atypical enough to thoroughly entertain. However, the issues Elwood grapples with--institutional betrayal, a dog-eat-dog world, meanness, loneliness, etc--are issues that all readers should be able to identify with. Hopefully, the many excellent reviews combined with the book being made into a film will encourage Professor O'Connor to write additional novels. I have been anxiously waiting for a second novel but none has been forthcoming. In conclusion, this is the finest book I have ever read.

Not That It's All Cracked Up To Be:
No doubt sales of BUFFALO SOLDIERS will surge thanks to the release of the adapted motion picture, a blessing for which I won't begrudge Robert O'Connor, though should he be able to afford the weekender on Long Island because of it, I hope he gets nothing but squalls and plumbing issues when there. Harsh? I don't believe so; there simply isn't merit enough in BUFFALO SOLDIERS to warrant a weekender anywhere, least of all Long Island. Some have pointed out discrepancies in the detail, errors in military procedure that have irked those familiar with armed services operations. It's true that these may reflect less than strident research, but since it's not a novel that in any way seeks acclaim through an adherence to the fine-print of military conduct, I would suggest that O'Connor be let off the hook for these offences - besides, there are sins far more reprehensible at hand. In particular, the characterisation of the protagonist, Ray Elwood; the 'voice' that O'Connor has created is so uneven as to make any understanding of this scag-dealing U.S. Army clerk nigh on impossible. (I should mention here that O'Connor has chosen to tell this tale by way of the second-person point of view, a device that wears so quickly it's none too hard to see why it's virtually an extinct form. Consequently the reader - 'you' - are complicit in Elwood's behaviour.) There is no real notion of Ray Elwood as a unique individual; he has been laboured with such bland dialogue and disparate assignments of conduct - alternately avoiding the attention of physically imposing soldiers - the 'yams' - and making power-plays from the rear of his Mercedes 450-SL (a fanciful contrivance in itself) - that any hope of arriving at a sense of appreciation for the book's broader intentions is lost under the shaky sketch of character. Elwood isn't the only character who suffers in this manner. There is Mireille, the archetype prostitute so prevalent in the hackneyed Hollywood annals, a woman more akin to an innocent virgin princess than bed-hopping swamp-donkey, a sensitive, intuitive soul whose concern for the client extends far beyond how many more half-hour sessions he's willing to shell out for. O'Connor has her delivering dialogue as if she'd just come from a semester at the Highberry Finishing School for Young Ladies. "I have made coffee. Would you care for some?" she asks at one point. I'm surprised O'Connor didn't have Elwood reply, "Oh, splendid! And after shall we go for croquet?" And what of Stoney? "He's black, he's big, and he hates whites." And yet he falls over himself to run defense for the moon-white, scrawny shyster that is Elwood. At one point he even commits to be Elwood's business partner in post-Army life. Ultimately, it's the inconsistencies of this sort that will leave the astute reader wanting. It was interesting to note that a fellow reviewer volunteered that he was a student of O'Connor's at the State University of New York at the time of the book's release, specifically: "It was amazing to read this book when you know the man. As a teacher, he is straight as an arrow and proper, but this book is raw and exciting." Why is this interesting? Because the book reads precisely like a "straight as an arrow and proper" author's attempt to create a world in which his characters are attuned to the prevailing notions of cool. When reading BUFFALO SOLDIERS I found it no chore to picture O'Connor sitting at his word processor, thinking: "Now, what would the hip individual say in this situation?" Mostly it reads as if O'Connor has stitched into the narrative at every third line an entry from a dictionary of slang. I think it's safe to say that any suggestion of comparisons to Heller's 'CATCH-22' - and they abound - have originated around the publisher's boardroom table. That novel had a manic quality, a narrative that wound tighter and tighter in on itself until you didn't know whether to laugh or cry. I didn't laugh once during BUFFALO SOLDIERS, and the only danger of tears were any I may have shed in happiness upon finishing the book. After having seen the film and read the book, I should be surprised if people's opinions correspond with the popular sentiment which suggests that the transfer from source material to the celluloid form rarely serves justice - but only because I don't see how the movie could be any worse.

Funny but wildly out of touch with reality:
Others have reviewed the comedic style of the author and compared it to Catch-22, et alia. That's fine: It's an okay style, sometimes amusing, sometimes distracting. But the book couldn't decide what it wanted to be. O'Connor seems to have waffled on whether he was writing a realistic book about the military's dark underbelly, or writing a Douglas Adams-esque preposterous farce. Ultimately, it's a book written set in amongst the military by someone with zero apparent military experience, who skimped on research. Still, even if those who know the military will be distracted by the implausibility of important plot elements...if you ACCEPT the fantasy in the same way that one might accept the premise of a swords-and-sorcery novel, THEN it becomes a funny read. It's all a matter of suspension of disbelief.

Dark satire with great characters:
Don't expect to find any heroic soldiers in this story. In fact, don't expect to find characters you will like. However, you will find believable characters in believable situations. Contrary to what some reviewers have written here, everyone in the military is not perfect. Kudo's to the troops that swept through Kuwait during Desert Storm, but let's not forget the Tailhook incident. This story is not about all the military, just one small group of soldiers at one base in Germany at a particular point in time....and it's a NOVEL (i.e. fiction). And what a story it is....black market deals, love affairs, exploding tanks, and a main character that is about as unlikable as they come. Enjoy!

Books aren't comfort food:
Judging by some of the reviews I've read of some of the books I've read lately, a chunk of readers don't want to be disturbed, offended or otherwise challenged by anything they read. Then why read? And if you fit this category, don't bother with "Buffalo Soldiers." If you don't, keep reading ... I didn't read "Buffalo Soldiers" for an accurate depiction of the Army, & I didn't get one. The Army is merely the novel's setting, as it was for "Catch-22," which portrayed it no more accurately. These books are FICTION. That said, I read this in one sitting. Indeed, it cost me sleep on a recent transatlantic flight, because I didn't put it down, it moves with such a wonderful frenetic pace, which I was loath to interrupt. I was initially disheartened to realize the book is in the second person. It's a credit to Robert O'Connor that he pulls this off beautifully. I'm certain this device can't often be used & work: O'Connor uses it masterfully. If I heard he had written a second book using the same technique, I would buy it sight unseen. The book is profane. It's not for the squeamish or easily offended. It doesn't paint a positive picture of its setting or, more or less, any of its characters (though I was pulling mightily for SPC Elwood by the end). And it's a helluva read. I wish O'Connor would get some more published.